Three of the five transportation modes carried more U.S.-NAFTA trade in August 2013 than in August 2012 as the value of overall U.S. trade with its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners, Canada and Mexico, rose 2.0 percent from year to year, according to the August NAFTA freight data released today by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (Table 1).

BTS, a part of the Department’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that pipelines showed the most year-to-year growth at 18.2 percent. The increase in the value of freight carried by pipelines reflects the rise in prices for oil and other petroleum products, the primary commodity transported by pipelines.

Trade by Mode
Truck, which carries three-fifths of U.S.-NAFTA trade and is the most heavily utilized mode for moving goods to and from both U.S.-NAFTA partners, rose 0.7 percent while rail rose 3.0 percent. Vessel declined 2.6 percent and air 2.4 percent (Figure 1).

Trucks carried 59.9 percent of the $96.5 billion of U.S.-NAFTA trade in August 2013 accounting for $30.3 billion of exports and $27.5 billion of imports (Table 2). Trucks were followed by rail at 15.6 percent, vessels at 8.5 percent, pipeline at 7.4 percent and air at 3.7 percent. The surface transportation modes of truck, rail and pipeline carried 82.9 percent of the total NAFTA freight flows (Figure 2).

Figure 2. U.S.-NAFTA Freight by Mode, August 2013
Current dollars, Share of total

Trade with Canada
U.S.-Canada trade by pipeline, of which 90 percent was imported, increased the most of any mode from August 2012 to August 2013, growing 20.6 percent. U.S.-Canada pipeline trade comprises 96 percent of total U.S.-NAFTA pipeline trade (Tables 2, 4). Freight moved by rail between the U.S. and Canada decreased by 1.4 percent (Figure 3).

For trade with Canada in August, trucks carried 54.6 percent of the $53.4 billion of the freight, followed by rail at 16.7 percent, pipelines at 12.8 percent, vessel at 5.0 percent and air at 4.5 percent. The surface transportation modes of truck, rail and pipeline carried 84.1 percent of the total U.S.-Canada freight flows (Table 4).

Trade with Mexico
U.S.-Mexico trade by rail increased the most of any mode from August 2012 to August 2013, growing 10.1 percent. Freight moved by pipeline between the U.S. and Mexico decreased by 17.5 percent (Figure 4). However, U.S.-Mexico pipeline trade only comprises 4 percent of total U.S. NAFTA pipeline trade (Tables 2, 6).

For trade with Mexico in August, trucks carried 66.3 percent of the $43.2 billion of the freight, followed by rail at 14.3 percent, vessel at 12.8 percent, air at 2.8 percent and pipelines at 0.7 percent. The surface transportation modes of truck, rail and pipeline carried 81.3 percent of the total U.S.-Mexico freight flows (Table 6).

Commodities
In August 2013, the top commodity group transported between the U.S. and Canada was mineral fuels, of which $6.8 billion moved by pipeline (Table 5). The top commodity category transported between the U.S. and Mexico in August 2013 was electrical machinery, of which $7.2 billion moved by truck (Table 7).

Reporting Notes
Beginning with January 2013, BTS monthly TransBorder press releases contain data for all modes of transportation. Press releases and the BTS website define surface transportation modes as truck, rail and pipeline. See North American TransBorder Freight Data on the BTS website for additional data for surface modes since 1995 and all modes since 2004.

The category of all modes of transportation cited in the following tables includes freight movements by truck, rail, vessel, pipeline, air, other and unknown modes of transport. Figure 2 above provides a breakdown by value and percentage of each mode of freight transportation used in moving goods between the U.S. and its NAFTA partners in August. The dotted slices represent surface modes, which accounted for 82.9 percent of the total.

Data in this press release are not adjusted for inflation. Additional summary data adjusted for inflation and exchange rates can be found on the BTS website under TransBorder Indexed Freight Flow Data. The BLS indexes used in the adjustments for inflation and exchange rates may be revised in each of the three months after original publication.

For more information, see TransBorder Press Releases for previous press releases and summary tables. See TransBorder Freight Data for data from previous months, and more state, port, or commodity data. BTS has scheduled the release of September TransBorder numbers for Dec. 5.

Notes: : Numbers might not add to totals due to rounding. Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding. The value of trade for all modes is not equal to the sum of truck, rail, pipeline, vessel and air modes, it also includes shipments made by mail, foreign trade zones, and other transportation. For additional detail, please refer to the "Data Fields" section of the TransBorder web page: http://transborder.bts.gov/programs/international/transborder/TBDR_DataF....

Notes: : Numbers might not add to totals due to rounding. Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding. The value of trade for all modes is not equal to the sum of truck, rail, pipeline, vessel and air modes, it also includes shipments made by mail, foreign trade zones, and other transportation. For additional detail, please refer to the "Data Fields" section of the TransBorder web page: http://transborder.bts.gov/programs/international/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html.

Table 5. Top Commodity Transported between the U.S. and Canada for Each Mode of Transportation, August 2013

Notes: : Numbers might not add to totals due to rounding. Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding. The value of trade for all modes is not equal to the sum of truck, rail, pipeline, vessel and air modes, it also includes shipments made by mail, foreign trade zones, and other transportation. For additional detail, please refer to the "Data Fields" section of the TransBorder web page: http://transborder.bts.gov/programs/international/transborder/TBDR_DataFields.html.

Table 7. Top Commodity Transported between the U.S. and Mexico for Each Mode of Transportation, August 2013